St. Catherine Laboure and the Miraculous Medal

St. Catherine Laboure 

Zoe Catherine (St. Catherine) was born on May 2, 1806 on the feast day of St. Zoe in the town of Fain-les-Mautiers, Cote-d'Or, France during the ringing of the Angelus. 

She was the ninth of the 11 children born to Pierre and Madeline Louise Laboure. The following day of her birth, she was baptized as Catherine Madeline on the feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross. 

Madeline Louise died when Catherine was nine years old. After her mother's funeral, a servant saw Catherine reach on her tippy toes for a statue of the Virgin Mary. She kissed the statue and said, "Now, dear lady, you are to be my Mother."

Catherine went to live with her aunt and attended the village church, where she saw her very first vision: An old priest was saying mass, and afterwards, he beckoned Catherine with his finger. Catherine stepped backwards but kept her eyes on him. The vision then changed - the old priest was in a sickroom. He said to her, "My child, it is a good deed to look after the sick; you run away from me now, but one day you will be glad to come to me. God has designs for you. Do not forget it!"

Soon afterwards, Catherine was at the Daughters of Charity's hospital when she noticed a picture on the wall - it was the same old priest she had seen in her vision. She asked who he was, and was told that he was St. Vincent de Paul - the Founder of Daughters of Charity.

She had other visions before the Blessed Virgin appeared to her as well. She saw Jesus present in the Sacred Host and later saw Him as He was when He was a crucified King, stripped of His adornments - this was on the feast of the Holy Trinity on June 6, 1830.

Her other St. Vincent de Paul apparitions were of him holding the Sacred Heart of Jesus in various colors. 

The WHITE Sacred Heart of Jesus = Peace

The RED Sacred Heart of Jesus = Fire

The BLACK Sacred Heart of Jesus = Misfortunes that would come upon France, particularly in Paris.

In January of 1830, Catherine joined the Sisterhood of the Daughters of Charity on the Rue de Bac.

Miraculous Medal 

On the evening of July 18, 1830, Catherine Laboure awoke to her Guardian Angel, who appeared as a child. Her Guardian Angel told her that she must go to the chapel as the Blessed Mother is waiting for her.

First Apparition 

Catherine knelt down and placed her hands in Mary's lap. Mary spoke to her and said, "God wishes to charge you with a mission. You will be contradicted, but do not fear; you will have grace. Tell your spiritual director all that passes within you. Times are evil in France, and in the world."

Pain crossed upon Mary's face as She said: "Comd to the foot of the altar. Graces will be shed on all, great and little, especially upon those who seek them... You will have the protection of God and Saint Vincent; I will always have my eyes upon you."

Second Apparition 

Sister Catherine writes: "On the 27th of November, 1830... while making my meditation in profound silence... I seemed to hear on the right hand side of the sanctuary that of the rustling of silk. Glancing in that direction, the Blessed Virgin stood near St. Joseph's picture. Her height was medium and her countenance, indescribably beautiful. She was dressed in a robe the color of dawn, high necked with plain sleeves. Her head was covered with a white veil, which floated over Her shoulders and down to Her feet. Her feet rested upon half of a globe. Her hands which were level with Her waist, held another globe. Her eyes were raised to Heaven, and Her countenance beamed light as She offered the globe to our Lord."

The Blessed Virgin told Catherine: "Have a medal struck upon this model. All those who wear it when it is blessed, will receive great graces especially if they wear it around the neck. Those who repeat this prayer with devotion will be in a special manner under the protection of God. Graces will be bestowed upon those who have confidence."

Miraculous Medal Design - Front

Mary is standing upon a globe (only half of it is visible) where She is crushing a serpent underfoot. She stands on the globe as the Queen of Heaven and Earth. Her crushing the serpent is a proclamation that Satan and his followers are helpless before Her. (Genesis 3:15). The reference to Mary conceived without sin supports the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of Mary - not to be confused with the virgin birth of Jesus, and is also in reference to Mary's sinlessness - full of grace and blessed among women (Luke 1:28).

Miraculous Medal - Backside 

The twelve stars can refer to the apostles, who represent the entire Church as it surrounds Mary. Saint John wrote in the Book of Revelation (12:1) "a great sign appeared in Heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars."

The cross symbolizes Christ and our redemption, with the bar under the cross as a sign of Earth. The M stands for Mary, and the interleaving of Her initial and the cross shows Her close involvement with Jesus and our world. 

The two hearts represent the love that both Mary, our Blessed Mother and Jesus, our Savior have for us. 

After the approval of the Church, the Miraculous Medal was made by a French goldsmith, Adrien Vachette, and were distributed in Paris. The blessings that Mary promised began to grace those who wore Her Medal. The devotion spread. Marvels of grace and health, peace and prosperity followed. 

Note: the Miraculous Medal should not be thought of as a 'good luck' charm as there is nothing magical about it. It is simply an instrument through our Blessed Mother Mary to God. 

Chapelle Notre-Dame de la Medaille Miraculeuse 

is located at 140 Rue du Bac in Paris, France. http://www.chapellenotredamedelamedaillemiraculeuse.com/langues/english/histoire-dune-famille-gb/

The Chapel of the Miraculous Medal was founded by both Saint Louise Marillac and Saint Vincent de Paul in 1633. Both of these saints, along with Saint Catherine Laboure can be seen in this chapel. 

Above is a photo of the body of St. Catherine Laboure encased in glass at the altar. 

Sister Catherine died on December 21, 1876 and was buried in a vault in Reuilly. On May 28, 1933, she was beatified* by Pioe Pius XI. This is when her body was exhumed and transferred to the glass case she is in now.

*Beatify is when the Roman Catholic Church declares a deceased person to be among the blessed and thus entitled to specific religious honor. 

On July 27, 1947, Sister Catherine was canonized as a saint by Pope Pius XII. 

Above photograph is the altar at the Miraculous Medal Chapel. 

Angelus 

During the ringing of the Angelus is when Catherine (Zoe) Laboure was born. The ringing of this bell is a call to prayer and the spread of goodwill to everyone; the bell rings at 6:00 in the morning, 12:00 noon and 6:00 in the evening. Here is a video of the Angelus bell ringing along with the prayers in Latin:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CvTqyqidfBs

Gabriel, AKA: Angelus, God's messenger revealed to Mary that she would conceive a child to be born the Son of God. (Luke 1:26-38)

Angelus Prayer 

V.: The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary

R.: And She conceived of the Holy Spirit

Pray the Ave Marie:

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with Thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

V.: Behold the handmaid of the Lord.

R.: Be it done unto me according to Your Word.

Ave Marie

V.: And the Word was made flesh.

R.: And dwelt among us.

Ave Marie

V.: Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God.

R.: That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray:

Pour forth, we beseech You, O Lord, Your Grace into our hearts; that as we have known the Incarnation of Christ, Your Son by the message of an angel, so by His passion and cross we may be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Prayer of Devotion to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal 

Virgin Mother of God, Mary Immaculate, I unite myself to You under your title of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.

May this medal be for me a sure sign of your motherly affection and a constant reminder of my devotion to You. While wearing it, may I be blessed by your loving protection and preserved in the grace of Your Son. 

Most powerful virgin, Mother of our Savior, keep me close to You every moment of my life so according to the teaching and example of Jesus. Keep me as your faithful child that I may follow your example throughout life and enjoy Heaven forever with you.

Amen.

#StCatherineLaboure #MiraculousMedal #JCHeartDesigns

Next Up: Color

Sources: 

• Wikipedia 

• Our Lady of the Rosary Library (olrl.org)

• Mary Pages

• Association of the Miraculous Medal (amm.org)

• catholic.org

• You Tube 

• Miraculous Medal Chapel

• Our Catholic Prayers

Full Circle

I read an article in the magazine, Handmade Success by Luann Udell where she talks about the core story. 

"...the story that creates the foundation for all your other stories. When you find it, it tells the world why it should care about what you do. All the other stories- the who, the what, where and how- all recede before the story of WHY."

When I read the article that preceded this one, I thought to myself, 'Huh, that makes sense.' I also thought finding the WHY I make jewelry would be easy peasy. Surely I should know why, right? Wrong!

Writing comes very natural to me- so I sat down and started writing about all the reasons why I make jewelry. Thiese are what I came up with:

• Making jewelry is a form of creative expression for me.

• I love color - shades, hues, etc.

• I love the patterns of gemstones.

• Nature inspires me.

• I love taking wire and creating something beautiful.

All of these are true, but none of them are the WHY I make jewelry. I had to dig deeper and continue to ask myself why. I think I wrote for two hours - why I use the materials I do, how I learned, why I make the types of jewelry I make. I still didn't hit the jackpot. I, figuratively, threw my hands up in the air, tore out the pages and crumpled them. Exasperated, I put this question on the back burner.

And then...

I thought I needed to change my business name. See: Evolving Name

In 2008, I felt a calling (a rather strong feeling in the center of my being) to make rosaries. Up until then, I had never worked with wire or chain. I had absolutely no clue as to how I was going to pull this off.

How do I make a rosary? Where will I get the materials to make a rosary? 

Well one day when I was walking in downtown Santa Cruz, headed towards Lulu's coffee spot, I felt a virtual hand gently turning me around , changing the direction I was headed... I cannot describe this feeling any more than I can describe the calling I felt. 

I walked in the direction that I was told to walk, and I ended up walking into an antique store. I,literally, was brought to a case that had crucifixes and a Miraculous Medal. I bought them and then (went to Lulu's.) it was truly awe-inspiring. Had I just witnessed a miracle? It sure felt that way! 

Later, when I got home, I got my rosaries out and looked at the beads - how can I recreate this? I started practicing, bought some more rosary parts from an online store called Lewis and Company and then I started making rosaries.

Up to date, I've made over two dozen rosaries for family, friends, and the prolife movement. 

Next up: The Rosary (and why this gift is so precious!)

The ROSARY

The Rosary is the most precious gift - both to ourselves and others. It is a powerful prayer that when prayed devoutly - blessings rain down upon us!

It is a prayer of repetition that is also meditative. By repeating the Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be and the Fatima Prayer. We open our minds to the Mysteries and our hearts to devotion. The Rosary is a perfect prayer as it tells the story of our salvation within the mysteries.

Praying the Rosary 

We start with the Sign of the Cross, "In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."

Next is the Apostle's Creed (which summarizes the mysteries of our Catholic faith.)

Then the Lord's Prayer:

 "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen."

After each Our Father, we concentrate on a mystery. There are four sets of Mysteries and within each Mystery are five mysteries. These are centered on the events of Jesus, our Savior's life. As we think of each Mystery, we pray the 

Hail Mary

The Hail Mary is composed of two parts. 

The first part, "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou, among women and blessed is thy fruit of thy womb Jesus." - the angel's words announcing Christ's birth and Elizabeth's greeting to Mary. The second part was added by St. Pius V, "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen."

The Glory Be

"Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, World without End. Amen."

Next:

The Mysteries - only one set of mysteries is said in a rosary. 

Joyful Mysteries 

1. Annunciation- humility

2. Visitation- love thy neighbors

3. Nativity- poverty for the poor in spirit; detachment from the things of this world and contempt of riches; love of the poor (homeless)

4. Presentation of Jesus in the Temple - purity and obedience 

5. Finding of Jesus in the Temple - time for wisdom/conversion; piety; finding Christ in our own lives

Luminous Mysteries 

1. Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan - openness to the Holy Spirit, the healer

2. Wedding Feast of Cana - through Jesus to Mary, the understanding of the ability to manifest through faith

3. Jesus' Proclamation of the Coming of the Kingdom of God - Trust in God

4. Transfiguration - Desire for Holiness

5. Institution of the Eucharist - Adoration 

Sorrowful Mysteries 

1. Agony in the Garden - Sorrow for sin; Uniformity with the Will of God

2. Scurging at the Pillar - Mortification; Purity

3. Crowning with Thorns - Contempt of the world; Courage 

4. Carrying of the Cross - Patience

5. Crucifixion and Death - Salvation; Forgiveness 

Glorious Mysteries 

1. Resurrection - Mystery; Faith

2. Ascension - Hope and Desire for Accensiion into Heaven

3. Descent of the Holy Spirit - Holy Wisdom to know the truth and share with everyone; Divine Charity; Worship of the Holy Spirit

4. Assumption - Grace of a happy death and True Devotion to Mary

5. Coronation of Mary - Perseverance and Crown of Glory; Trust in Mary's Intercession 

Salve Regina (AKA: Hail, Holy Queen

There is an additional prayer:

"O God, whose only begotten Son, by His life, death and resurrection has purchased for us the rewards of eternal life. Grant, we beseech Thee that while meditating on these mysteries of the most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may imitate what they contain, and obtain what they promise, through the same Christ, our Lord. Amen. "

A Spiritual Bouquet 

When we pray the Rosary - each Ave Maria is like giving a rose to our Mother Mary. When we complete the Rosary - She has enough roses to make a crown. This is why the Rosary is known as the 'Crown of Roses.' 

Rosary in Latin is rosarium, which means rose garland or rose tree; which loosely translates into a crown of roses.

Why is the rose the chosen flower? The rose is the queen of all flowers, and Mary is the Queen of Heaven and Earth. 

The rose with its five petals, symbolizes the five wounds of Christ. 

According to angels.about.com - the intricate and elegant rose offers a glimpse of a masterful Creator's active presence in creation. As the rosebud blooms, it gradually opens to reveal its blossoms with lovely layers. This is an illustration of how spiritual wisdom unfolds in people's lives. The strong, sweet fragrance of a rose brings to mind the powerful sweetness of love that is the essence of God. 

According to swide.com - the rose symbolizes the birth and rebirth; whereas the speed in which the rose withers is likened to death of mankind and the fragility of our existence.

Rose Colors

White - purity and holiness

Red - passion and sacrifice 

Yellow - wisdom and joy

Purple or Lavender - wonder, awe and change

Pink - gratitude and peace

The pink and white roses are most often related to our blessed Mother. White because She is pure of heart, body and soul; Pink because the blood of Christ spilt on to the white rose and changed its color. 

This is the rose of Sharon: 

which is often used to represent the Madonna. You can see the five petals in this rose clearly. 

The 15 Promises of the Rosary by our Blessed Mother

1. To all those who shall pray my Rosary devoutly, I promise my special protection and great graces.

2. Those who shall persevere in the recitation of my Rosary will receive some special grace.

3. The Rosary will be a very powerful armor against hell; it will destroy vice, deliver from sin and dispel heresy.

4. The Rosary will make virtue and good works flourish, and will obtain for souls the most abundant divine mercies. It will draw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire of eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.

5. Whoever recites my Rosary devoutly reflecting on the mysteries shall never be overwhelmed by misfortune. He will not experience the anger of God nor will he perish by an u provided death. The sinner will be converted; the just will persevere in grace and merit eternal life.

7. Those truly devoted to my Rosary shall not die without the sacraments of the Church.

8. Those who are faithful to recite my Rosary shall have during their life and at their death, the light of God and the plenitude of His graces and will share in the merits of the blessed. 

9. I will deliver promptly from purgatory, souls devoted to my Rosary.

10. True children of my Rosary will enjoy the great glory in heaven.

11. What you shall ask through my Rosary, you shall obtain.

12. To those who propagate my Rosary, I promise to aid in all their necessities.

13. I have obtained from my Son that all the members of the Rosary Confraternity shall have as their intercessors, in life and design, the entire celestial court.

14. Those who recite my Rosary faithfully are my beloved children, the brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ.

15. Devotion to my Rosary is a special sign of predestination.

St. Bernard of Clairvaux wrote 

Eve was a thorn, wounding, bringing death to all.

In Mary we see a rose, soothing everybody's hurts, giving the destiny of salvation back to all.

Mary was a rose, white for maidenhoid, red for love:

White in body, red in soul;

White in her seeking after virtue, red in treading down vice;

White in cleansing her affections, red in mortifying her flesh;

White in her love of God, red in compassion for her neighbor.

Skeptical?

There is some talk that because the Rosary is not mentioned in the Bible - it is meaningless. The word, Rosary, is not in the Bible because It came after the Bible was written. However, every prayer and mystery are in the Bible. Therefore the Rosary is the REAL thing!

Next up: the Miraculous Medal

Sources: images are from the web, Wikipedia, swide.com, Angels.about.com, catholic.org, the holy rosary.com, catholic.com & misc. websires

Evolving Name

Many years ago when I first started making jewelry, I coined my business as "Star's Jewelry Creations". 

Why Star's? Why not Beth's? Beth is my birth name, carefully chosen by my parents. (I was named after the character in Little Women, but I'm more like Jo than Beth.) My name sounds so plain, whereas Star sounds exotic. I chose the name Star from the movie, The Lost Boys. Star became my nickname... and at one time in my life - I was considering on permanently changing my name to this. I cannot count how many times I've introduced myself to people and had to correct them saying, "No, I'm just Beth." 

Which brings me to the next name: Jewelry Creations from the Heart. As my name (just) Beth is unique, I didn't need Star any more. I added "from the heart" because I wanted another symbol I could add to the JC for my hand drawn logo. 

In 2011 when I went to sell my jewelry on Etsy, someone was using "Jewelry creations from the heart " as their slogan. (Their slogan, mind you, not their business name!)  And because of this, I wasn't able to use this as my store name. Argh! doesn't even come close to the feeling I felt. What am I going to use now as my business's name?! 

After much brainstorming, I chose my logo: JC Heart and then added the Designs to this. I didn't want to use jewelry because at that time I was making rosaries too. 

Fast forward to 2015 - I have been wondering if I should change my business name. To what? No clue. Why would I even consider changing the name? Because JC Heart Designs doesn't specify my type of business. For all people know, I could be selling candles! 

I could change my name back to Jewelry Creations from the Heart (Etsy allows one name change), but then I run into the same problem as before - I don't just make jewelry. Then I thought, huh, I could change it to Jeweled Creations from the heart. But I run into another problem as ❤️ could mean heart or love. *sigh* 

Many people associate the JC for Jesus Christ which never even occurred to me although I'm Catholic. (Go figure!) 

So for 1 week, i wrote down lots and lots of words that are associated with what type of jewelry and other designs that I make. I also looked up adjectives and synonyms. Swapping words around, adding or subtracting adjectives... Back and forth, searching domain names and looking at the USPTO website (for trademarks, patents, and copyrights.) I came up with a lot of names; such as: 

• Encompassed Jewel 

• Hammered Ore Wired

• Riveting Wire Designs 

• Strung and Wired

But I wasn't sure... I started questioning if I really wanted to do this? Do I want to throw away four years of work by trying to get JC Heart out there? I'd have to change EVERYTHING! I'd have to get a new email address, new business cards, new slogan, new logo, and update all of my accounts- Facebook, Twitter, Pintrest, Blogger, Google, etc. 

The Epiphany 

And then in the middle of the night, 'it' occurred to me that Jesus Christ is the sole reason I make the type of jewelry I create now! Oh my gosh!!! I was overwhelmed with joy when this thought was placed in my head. I immediately thanked God and prayed. 🙏

Everything clicked into place! 

Next up: "Full Circle"